Previous album 
Next album
In 1991 when Different World was released, Uriah Heep were at a difficult time in their long, successful and sometimes tumultuous career. The band wanted Richard Dodd, who had produced their last studio album, Raging Silence, to once again work with them. However he already had a steady stream of commitments for the foreseeable future so was unable to help. The band had already committed the time out to record a new album and with no outside producer they felt happy working with they decided to enter the studio and record anyway. Dodd recomended that the band consider using Trevor Bolder to handle the production duties. They agreed, and the band's long established bass player stepped forward to take the producer's chair. The Different World period was a difficult one for the band as it was apparent that their label Legacy was undergoing change, and subsequently the band were to suffer because of this. A lot of touring was being done and the band were generally working very hard, but because of the underlying problems, they seemed to be going nowhere fast.
The release of Live In Moscow had been a real boost for the new line-up, and the follow up album, Raging Silence, had met with reasonable critical acclaim, but still the band couldn't penetrate the elusive and exclusive successful market they had so readily entered earlier. To top it all, the record company appeared to be losing focus as well, although this was due primarily to the financial difficulties the label was going through at the time.
Even though Different World may not have been the best record the band issued, it is nevertheless an important link in the Uriah Heep history. However, the album was incredibly well recorded. In comparing the original masters from Raging Silence produced by Richard Dodd and Different World produced by Trevor Bolder, the recorded sound on the latter album wins hands down.
Different World, even if it was not viewed as a brilliant album, did contain some good tracks, several of which would enter the live set for quite some time. The band even used a children's choir on one of the tracks, All Gods Children, a song that would have made an interesting single release. Blood On Stone, for those who have heard it, just rocks! Different World is one of those albums that if you give it time, you will be rewarded.
After the release and subsequent failure of the Different World album the band were not to record for another three years. Mind you, when they did, it was well worth waiting for! The 1995 album, Sea Of Light, was a minor masterpiece, proving that the band could still more than deliver the goods.
© 1998 Robert M. Corich
Bonus Tracks:
Previous album
Next album
Content Copyright © 1997-98 Jay Pearson
| LinkExchange Member | Free Home Pages at GeoCities |